Chances are that if you sew or craft in some form or other, you probably have a pair of the famous orange handled scissors in your tool box. I have been writing articles and projects for Fiskars since last summer and I've been lucky enough to have been given a lot of their products. I have a pair of scissors next to my sewing machine, a pair right next to my serger, my fabric shears on my sewing table and a couple of pairs of truly wonderful MicroTip Scissors No. 5 within easy reach. Not only is my sewing room incredibly well equipped with Fiskars tools, it's also pretty safe to say that I can stand in any room in my house and lay my hands on a pair of Fiskars almost without even taking a step. I have also become incredibly fussy about what scissors I use for which job. I won't bore you with the details but just know that I am VERY particular and don't you DARE use my thread cutters for trimming bacon fat.

Honestly, (and they're not paying me to say this) the Fiskars scissors are great and I do ALOT of sewing/cutting/crafting. My absolute favorites are my 9" dressmaker shears because they are so sharp and cut right to the very tip of the blade. They are the kind of scissors that you don't want to cut yourself with because you'd be in danger of losing an arm or two and that would be a shame. I also love the weight and feel of my 8" forged scissors. They aren't quite as comfortable to use as the shears, but I really love that they are an all metal design. They make me feel like I'm using some kind of old tool that it isn't necessary to reinvent because it's already perfect.

I cringe when I go to fabric stores nowadays because I stand there as they cut my yardage with some crappy blunt scissors. The women wear wrist supports (presumably because they get RSI from all their hard work cutting) and the cutting line on the fabric is pretty pathetic. It's all I can do to stop myself smuggling my own scissors into the store and offering to cut up my own yardage.

Anyway, it's the 45th anniversary of the orange handled Fiskars and they have a lot of fun stuff going on over on their website and also their FB page. As part of the celebrations, the Fiskars design team were given the challenge to create some projects using ONLY a pair of orange handled scissors as a tool.

My fellow designer Tania Willis came up with this gorgeous project for a kid's puppet theater. (Do you like how I spelled theater? US spelling is almost second nature to me these days - and I'm a bit of a grammar snob). My kids would love this and I think it might be a project for the future.

I decided to use my scissors to make my own jersey yarn.

I uses this yarn to crochet myself a rug and it's lovely. I put it in my sewing room and it helps keep my feet warm as I work away.

You can find out how I made my jersey yarn and also the pattern I came up with for the rug by clicking here.

Do you own any orange handled Fiskars? Are you as particular as me when it comes to assigning jobs to your scissors? Or am I the weird one?

Napkins {tutorial}

Disclaimer : I may have made more than one sweeping generalization in the writing of this post.

When I first moved to the US 7 and 1/2 years ago, I was surprised at how ferociously the Americans celebrate their holidays and festivals. It was mid September and of course, many people already had some Halloween decorations up; pumpkins sat on porch steps and straw bales propped up grocery store displays of squash and unusual looking gourds. Being used to a more understated way of celebrating Halloween (and by understated, I mean turning off all the lights in the house and pretending no-one was home so that the two drunk teenagers dressed up as two drunk teenagers would pass our house without knocking), I admit to being more than a little scathing of the US over exuberance.

However, in the time that I have lived here I have come to think much differently. For a start, the Americans are very good at including children in their celebrations. I mean, how fun would a 5 hour July 4th parade REALLY be if there weren't people throwing out candy or little plastics parachuting men or handing out flags? (or maybe that's just me?) And Valentine's Day in England always seemed to be about lovers exclusively, whereas here it's about lovers, friends, extended family, teachers, neighbors and your pet lizard (we don't have a lizard).

Which brings me on to St. Patrick's Day. It's not just for the Irish. You're not just invited to the party, you are the party, whether you are Irish, Italian, Asian or Scandinavian.

My English stiff upper lip has softened. I've let my hair down. Life is too short and I'm wearing green on St Patrick's Day.

My 7yr old likes to watch that cartoon called Phineas and Ferb, which is quite funny because from what I can tell, it's about an American family with an English dad. The dad makes some observant remarks about the Americans every now and then, and yes I am about to quote a cartoon character. In my opinion, Phineas and Ferb's dad is right up there with Simone de Beauvoir and errr....Charlie Brown.

Dad : 'That's what I love about you Americans, you're like big fun children'

Mum : 'Yes, yes we are'.

To make your own napkins, you will need 1/4 yard of two different fabrics. I made 4 napkins. Cut 8 squares (4 in each fabric) measuring 10" x 10".

Take 2 squares and lay on top of each other with right sides facing. Pin all the way around the edge. See my two yellow pins at the top? Don't sew between them. This will be your turning hole.

Close up of turning hole. Don't sew between the yellow pins!

Sew the two pieces of fabric together with a straight line. I used red here so you can see it in the photos. Ideally you will use a coordinating color. Or not. Whatever makes you happy.

Take a small pair of scissors and clip the points off all four corners. This will help the corners poke out nicely when you turn the napkins the right way.

Turn the napkin the right way and press the seams with an iron folding the edges in where you left the turning hole.

Make sure you poke out the corners to a nice point. You can use a wooden kebab stick or stuffing tool. I don't recommend using scissors.

Topstitch all the way around the napkin making sure to close up the turning hole.
And repeat for all napkins.

Ok, so what fun things are you doing/making for St. Patricks Day, you big kids, you.

Linking up to :

Feeling proud

Is it vain of me to feel so much pride in this dress I made for my little one? Of course, all I did was buy the pattern, cut it out and sew it together, so I do realize its perfection is not entirely down to me.

But, it is totally the right dress for the right little girl. I think it looks great on her and I made it with more than my usual carefulness.

And I'm probably reveling in this feeling, because this isn't how I always feel at the end of a sewing project.

Pride is not usually thought of as an attractive quality. It suggests an excess of self-importance or an over inflated self-image. I don't think I have either of those things. I'm pretty aware of my small place in the world, but am happily surrounded by family and friends who love me.

But I am PROUD. The dress isn't perfect, but it's perfect to me!

Yes, it may seem a little incongruous to put in a bright green invisible zipper, when the thing is supposed to be hiding, but look at that lovely green zipper pull.

What's not especially clear from all these photos is that I finished the sleeves and the hem with a green ric rac. The dress itself is linen from Joanns. I love the weight of this fabric so much. I use it a lot for bags and pouches but this is the first time I have used it for clothing (mainly because I don't like ironing and this thing NEEDS to be ironed after washing), but it's worth it and the dress isn't very big. She's only five.

The pattern is the Sunki by Figgy's.

Miz Mozelle #2

You're probably fed up with my one awkward pose and 'away from the camera and off into the distance' stare that I do on all my photos when I model the clothes I've made. I know I am. I'm always thinking about buying a dress form but they are so, so expensive (especially these beautiful ones which are the ultimate in dress forms). Has anyone made a duct tape one before?

There's also the small matter of housing it somewhere. My sewing room (a reasonably sized room) is already home to my sewing machine and serger, as well as a large craft table and this amazing lighting kit, (which deserves a blog post of its own and which I shall have to tell you about sometime soon). I suppose I could keep a dress form in the closet, but for some reason that seems a bit inhumane. Plus, creepy.

So anyway, for now, here is an empty Miz Mozelle, the second one I have made. You can read about the first one here.

I really love the style of this dress and it would be a great beginner's project. This time, I decided to brighten up some plain navy jersey with a bright fluorescent yellow bias tape at the sleeves, collar and keyhole. I also added a bright pink button. Pink is not usually a color I choose to use very often, which is probably the reason why I chose it this time.

The dress had an elasticated waist which I really love as it helps give the dress a great shape. It also has this belt to tie around the waist which is a nice detail.

Yep, I love this dress. Has anyone made any other Jamie Christina patterns? I like the look of the Sunny Day dress but halter necks always hurt the back of my neck, so I'm not sure...

Spring cleaning {giveaway}

I hate to be so predictable, but I'm having a spring clear out of my sewing room.

Lot 1

2 patterns by See & Sew

4003 Children's hats (sizes S - 20 3/4" head size, M - 21 1/2", L - 22 1/4")

B5234 Children's pajamas/night shirt (Sizes 2-3 -4-5)

Lot 2

2 patterns by New Look

0431 Dress (Size A 4-16)

6648 Top (Size A 4-16)

Lot 3

2 patterns by Simplicity (Project Runway)

2922 Dress/top (Size P5 12, 14, 16, 18, 20)

3504 Tunic top (Size D5 4,6,8,10,12)

(This one might be best for a size 12 since that size is in both patterns)

Lot 4

1 pattern by Kwik Sew

3827 Vest (Size XS, S, M, L, XL)

Pajama pants {tutorial}

I like my pajamas extra long, and being on the lanky side of tall, I find it difficult to find ones that fit. I also like pajamas that don't look too pajama-y. Not that I want to be taking my kids to school wearing them, but sometimes on a weekend when we're hanging out at home and there's no rush to get dressed, I'd like to be able to answer the door to the Fed Ex guy/girl without looking like I've just rolled out of bed. Which of course, I have. But he/she doesn't need to know that.

I've also been spending some time in the flannels section of the fabric store and really, what else can you make out of flannel other than pajamas? If you have any ideas, let me know. I have some scraps to use up.

For these pajama pants, I have assumed you have a pair of trousers that you like and if not actual pajama pants, then ones that are comfortable and fit you well. You don't want pajamas to be tight or restrictive, obviously. I used 2 yards of this tiny houndstooth flannel by Timeless Treasures which is 44" wide. If you are not a giant like me, you might be able to use less. I suggest you hold it up to yourself at waist level and measure down to your feet. Then add about another 1/4 yard just to be safe. This might not be the most scientific way to do it, and may possibly account for more than one of my sewing disasters. Safe to say however, that I am 5 ft 10 1/2 and 2 yards was enough. If you are the same height as me or shorter, 2 yards will be enough for you too!

Public health warning : If you use this tutorial to make yourself a pair of pajama pants, please do not take your kids to school whilst wearing them. Thank you.

Fold your fabric in half longways and lay on a flat surface. I used the floor. To make the pattern, trace off your existing trousers around the seams. Start with the front and then the back. Because the fabric is folded, you will end up with 2 front pieces and 2 back pieces. you will need to jiggle the trousers around a bit, to get the seams in the right place, but have confidence and it'll be fine (honest).

To make the faux fly on the front piece, add a 2" extra section to the curved seam like I have done in this photo below.

You can see the original curve of my seam as well as the faux fly section which sticks out of the curve, and joins further down. Cut out your pattern pieces and add about 1/2" seam allowance. (That bit is important).

I use a serger to finish my seams but you can also run a zig zag stitch along the edges. Finish the seam on the two front pieces from the waistband to the end of the curve.

Lay the two front pieces on top of each other with right sides facing. Stitch the seam from the curved point to the bottom of the faux fly. Do you see the pin I put in at the bottom of the faux fly? From that point continue up to the waist with a basting stitch.

Open up the pants and with the wrong sides facing you, press both fly pieces to the left.

On the front of the fly, top stitch the detail, catching the fabric folded underneath as you go.

Lay the two back pieces together with right sides facing and sew together at the back center seam from the tip of the curve up to the waistband. Finish seam. Lay the front section on top of the back section and sew the inseam all the way from one ankle, all the way up the leg, around the crotch and back down the other leg to the ankle. Finish your seams.

Sew the front to the back at the side seams.

To make the waistband, I used a length of wide grosgrain ribbon. Turn pants right sides out and pin the ribbon around the top of the waistband and stitch.

Fold the ribbon to the wrong side (my ribbon wasn't quite long enough so I added in an interesting and unique 'design detail', though ideally your ribbon will reach all the way to the end) and stitch down, leaving a 2" hole to insert your elastic.

Use a bodkin, safety pin, skewer, knitting needle or whatever else you might use to thread the elastic through the waistband casing. Try your trousers on to get the right fit, then sew the 2 ends of elastic together securely and sew the hole you left, closed.

Hem the pants.

Finish the faux fly by removing the basting stitches you put in earlier.

And sew on a couple of buttons. Not totally necessary, but it gives the trousers a nice finish.

And that's it, you're done! Easy as. I have to say, mine are pretty cozy. And long. No ankle biters here.

Did I leave anything out? Have questions? Just ask in the comments and I'll try to answer the best I can.

Kickin' Back Sweats #2

Have you discovered Stacey from Boy, Oh, Boy, Oh boy! yet? Seriously, go and check her out and while you're there you'll notice she's running a Sewing For Boys year long sew-along which as you know, just so happens to be my favorite sewing book at the moment.

I'm not necessarily committing myself to participating in Stacey's sew-along EVERY month (I already have my new year's resolution monthly projects to keep me busy) but February's project was a pair of Kickin' Back Sweats (or Mr Two Face pants for the little ones) and I'd been planning a new pair of these for my sprouting boy anyway.

I wanted to make him something comfortable for running and climbing in, that will keep him warm on our camping trips and look smart enough to wear to school. I don't ask much of myself do I?

Anyway, my idea was to make the sweats from cotton and to line them completely with a lovely soft flannel. I basically made two pairs of Kickin' Back Sweats and sewed them together at the waistband, flipped them the right ways out and hemmed them at the bottom. I put in extra large hems so that there's plenty of growing room and I can let the hems down as necessary. They look so cozy on him I'm ALMOST considering making myself a pair of flannel lined trousers. Almost, but not quite.

He's loving them but I haven't seen him do much 'kickin' back' in them.

February Dress

Now that my latest sewing project is up on the Fiskars website, I can share with you my new year's resolution item #2.

Read more about my new year's resolution and see my first project here.

For February, I decided to make the Miz Mozelle dress by Jamie Christina. I have now made 2 of these dresses (the second one I will share with you once I have finished photographing it) and I can't recommend it more highly.

It's a simple pattern and it comes together so quickly and best of all, it fits great! I really love both of the dresses I have made from this pattern.

The fabric for my February dress is SUPER special to me. Go on over to Fiskars and read all about it by clicking here.

I owe a huge and special thanks to Spoonflower. If you haven't already done so, you should check them out. They are a really amazing company.

And lastly, I wanted to share with you some photos we took of my new dress that DIDN'T make it into my Fiskars project. 5 year old and photography sessions are not a good mix :)